The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus that performs communication involving images and audio according to the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and an image forming system that includes the image forming apparatus.
Examples of image forming apparatuses that are known include printers and multifunction peripherals (MFPs). Some MFPs have both a facsimile (fax) function and a telephone function.
However, many of the MFPs described above are configured in such a manner that the telephone function and the fax function cannot be used at the same time. When using an MFP configured in such a manner, if the user wishes to use the fax function (e.g., transmit/receive image data to/from the party with which the user is having a call session), while using the telephone function (e.g., during the call session), it is considered to be necessary to stop the call session first so as to disconnect the telephone connection and to subsequently establish a fax connection. Further, it is considered that, when the transmission/reception of the image data using the fax function has been finished, it is necessary to disconnect the fax connection before establishing a telephone connection again.
To enable the user, even during a call session, to transmit/receive image data by using the fax function to/from a party with which the user is having the call session, a communication system as follows has been proposed: In this communication system, an MFP and a telephone machine are connected to a gateway apparatus. Further, the gateway apparatus is connected to another gateway apparatus via a SIP server. In the communication system configured in this manner, it is considered to be possible to transmit/receive image data by employing the MFP connected to the gateway apparatus to which the telephone machine is connected, while the user is having a call session on the telephone machine.